GPs will call for the General Practitioners’ Committee for England (GPCE) to negotiate for a funding stream ‘that directly funds an annual pay uplift for salaried GPs in line with DDRB recommendation’ at the conference for local medical committees (LMCs) for England next week.
As the motion notes, Wales and Northern Ireland already award salaried GPs an annual pay uplift in line with DDRB recommendations, but in England salaried GPs must ask the practice. The practice may decline as the uplift is not a ringfenced part of GP contract funding.
The agenda for the annual event for 2025 highlights Cambridgeshire LMC’s proposal for motion 18, scheduled for 3.50pm – one of the later items on Friday 7 November.
At midday, conference will highlight the discrepancy between parental leave reimbursement (SFE payments) and the current cost of GP locum sessions.
Motions on unemployment amongst GP locums have not been selected for discussion, despite Cambridgeshire LMC’ GPs remarking that the BMA’s #endGPunemployment campaign and ‘The value of a GP’ document ‘do not go far enough’.
Dr Richard Fieldhouse, NASGP chair, said: “This motion is vital and timely, addressing the crucial need for financial stability and certainty for our salaried colleagues. It is a stark reflection of the current situation in England that salaried GPs must lobby for uplifts that are routinely provided in Wales and Northern Ireland.
“We have consistently called for interim funding guarantees for salaried roles, ensuring pay matches BMA pay ranges and is index-linked. In the current climate of chronic underfunding, ringfencing this pay uplift provides certainty to salaried colleagues and removes the impossible financial burden from partners. This is the win-win scenario needed for recruitment and retention.
“We applaud the determination of the GPs of Cambridgeshire, Nottinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Sutton, Gloucestershire, Devon, West Sussex, and Kent for putting forward this crucial motion. Clinical staff are an investment, not just a cost, and securing their remuneration is paramount.”